I have MSIE 8, but I uninstalled the Flash plug-in for it. Chrome is installed and has the Flash plug-in, but I rarely use it.

Crashes seem to be completely random and unrelated to the content itself -- it could be simple animation or video, Actionscript or no Actionscript.

Multiple visits or plays of the same content may be perfectly fine, then suddenly the next time the computer crashes . After displaying the content for about a second, the screen just goes black and the computer reboots. No entry in the system Event Log.

The computer simply and suddenly reboots, and I lose anything I was working on.

> Does Explorer freeze up? or do you get a BSOD?

I don't use MSIE except for testing web sites, and I don't have the Flash plug-in installed for MSIE.

No BSOD. Just a sudden reboot.

> Does it go to a black screen?

The computer suddenly reboots so the monitor loses the video signal and goes black, displaying a "NO SIGNAL" message.

> And lastly, are there any error messages or does it just quit?

No error messages at all and nothing is recorded in the system Event Log.

After the reboot, I can go back to the same content and it will usually display fine.

It can also happen with content I've created when playing with the standalone Flash player. Because it's my own content, I know what's in it and there should be nothing strange to cause a crash. It happens even with simple frame animation and motion tweens.

The only parts of a computer that have enough privileges to crash a system are the hardware, the kernel and drivers. So what is happening is that (most likely) Flash is triggering a problem in one of those. The biggest suspect here are the video drivers, so check you have the latest video drivers from your vendor.

As I explained, this is not really a Flash issue but an issue in the privileged parts of the system: the Operating System and the drivers. So to debug this you need to look at it from the point of view of a Windows crash instead of the point of view of a Flash crash. The best explanation I have found for the process of identifying what is wrong is http://www.networkworld.com/news/2005/041105-windows-crash.html That page is a bit old, but the principles for that have remained the same over the years and across Windows versions. (Indeed, although all the tools have completely different names, the same process even applies to Linux and Mac OS X.)

As this is a Windows issue and not a Flash issue there is really not much we can do to help. If you get stuck with the process try the resources listed in the article or else try on the Microsoft support forums.

Hi kevin, I sort of feel left out in this discussion:-) You said that you were having these problems both with IE & FF.

You also said you had uninstalled the IE8 "plug-in" . You should have in your All addons the Shockwave Flash Object...ActiveX Control...Flash10e.ocx(version 10.0.45.2) installed and Enabled. This is the Control that works with your Flash Files for IE.

Same thing with Firefox, check the plug-ins for the SWF vs 10.0.45.2 it must be there and Enabled. And this works with your Flash Files for Firefox & Chrome.

I drive a 41 year old VW beetle. (Just what the hell does that have to do with a PC crash? you ask).

Occasionally, it used to just die in traffic. No sputter, no misfiring, no warning, one second running, the next it was dead.

An old man I know told me that "when a car just dies suddenly like that, it's always electrical. You've got a bad connection somewhere and it comes undone randomly, killing the car."

I went through my wiring for days and I found a bad connection inside my distributor. I fixed it with a soldered joint and the car hasn't died like that in three years. The old man was right.

How does this apply here? Well, there are some hard and fast rules in troubleshooting PCs just as there are in cars. Here's one:

When a PC (or Mac) just goes to a black screen and reboots... a "hard reboot" if you will, it's almost NEVER software related, but more than 95% of the time it can be traced to the processor, and a heat problem. The other 5% is usually a power supply and the same heat problem.

Since November, I've watched two desktops, a laptop, and my G5 iMac do this. Not one of those four systems is running anymore. They all had one thing in common. There was dust, or lint in the cooling fins over the processor, limiting airflow, and causing the chip to overheat, especially when running resource intensive applications. That's why it appeared that video editing or playback software was the culprit when it was simply the catalyst.

You need to get your processor checked before it gives the ghost up altogether. Also work on a better cooling system for it.

And in my original post I should have specified Windows Explorer, not IE. Sorry for that.

Hi and thanks for the reply. I forgot to mention that heat and/or lack of power was another thing that came to mind... but I'm inclined to rule those out.

The case is very well ventilated with a dedicated vent and funnel for the CPU cooling fan. Nothing obstructing the intake or exhaust grille areas.

I do not overclock and most of the time the CPU is running at around 8% to 12% on normal Flash playback. I also do video and rendering work and even when the CPU is running at close to 100% it has never crashed on non-Flash content.

The power supply is a 550W unit which should be more than enough. I haven't tried swapping the power supply yet since it would mean purchasing a new one just to test a long shot theory. Besides, the crashes only occur on Flash content, and even very mundane Flash content at that.

Just wanted you to know I'm in the same boat as you. Completely random restarts of the system, as in it might take ten minutes or ten hours. Memory tests fine, games are a-ok, the processor is super-cool (usually at about 45 degrees Celsius at the time of a crash). I first thought it was my video card (which is a 5770-- a whipping boy to begin with) but after the dozens of "fixes" didn't work (old drivers, new drivers, different idle clocks/voltage, etc.) it didn't seem like the video card anymore. Then I thought it was related to chipset drivers. After updating all my drivers, I was still getting the problem. I've been completely perplexed and a little maddened as this is the first time I've ever had problems like this. So I just let the crashes happen and I've gathered computer info as best I can, since except for an occasional freeze there is no BSOD or meaningful info in the event viewer.

Then I noticed it happened while clicking on a flash button, then later it happened while scrolling on a page that had a flash chart. Soon I noticed a pattern. It happens only when I've got Firefox open, and only when there is some sort of Flash app running (usually multiple apps in different tabs). I've disabled the Flash and haven't had the crash while it's been disabled, but that's no way to surf so I'm looking for a solution. I do understand the Volkswagen Beetle analogy and can appreciate that it still might be a non-software issue, but since it doesn't happen when Flash is disabled I'm at a loss to explain. If the only time your VW stopped working was on Flower Street, I bet you'd find a detour. I'm trying the earlier suggested "disable acceleration" setting, so I'll see how that works. Here's what I'll try if that doesn't work:

I've partially given up and ended up installing the Flash blocker plugin for Firefox.

I actually develop Flash content for work (e-learning and web site content -- no ads or games) so having to disable Flash was a last resort action for me... but the crashes are just too annoying and I was losing work every time it happened.

- I did try un-checking the hardware acceleration setting, but I still had crashes.

- I updated video, audio and mobo drivers. Still have crashes.

- Ran memtest86 all night through 17 passes and it all checked out fine.

- I don't think it's a PSU or heat issue since the computer never crashes when running much more demanding applications.

It only crashes completely randomly on the standalone Flash player or when loading a web page with Flash content or ads.

I agree with I_Know_Nothing_at_all that it is most likely a hardware issue since there are other computers running similar OS, browser, and Flash player software without any hiccups. But I haven't been able to find a place that will do a full system bench check.

That's actually one of the suggested "fixes" for the HD5770 video card issues that I've tried. When I disabled Aero, I noticed how much better I liked it when it was enabled. Absent Aero, the desktop looks so last year. But I was pretty sure that would solve the problem, so imagine my disappointment when the crashes continued. Again, I still experienced the crashes with Aero disabled. I was happy to tick Aero on again, though.

The tiny part-nerdy/part-superstitious part of my brain is trying to convince me that it's the OCZ power supply not being able to handle fluctuating power loads, but I don't know. I built several similar computers recently, none of which are experiencing this issue. One rig differs only in that it uses a GT240 video card and a Corsair TX750 power supply, so I might mix and match parts. Who knows, maybe I'll get lucky and the problem will disappear altogether! (Sorry, that was the part-nerdy/part-superstitious guy again.)

If so it still crashes the computer even without Aero it seems adobe is at fault for triggering a Windows bug.

Again I was so pissed off I uninstalled the f.. adobe flash player.

I don't think this issue is even hardware related it definitely have something to do with the O/S and flash player and / or the display driver.

I have a brand new Corsair HX750 Power supply I do not like any third party software as such to interfering with my work and workstation.

My memory modules also tests ok.

Also firefox prompted a adobe.com selected customer survey just after I made the previous post in this forum, which I refused to participate by closing firefox, and I turned off the monitor, went away for 10 minutes, came back just to find out that it BSOD 0x24 MODULE_NAME: Ntfs

So wouldn't it be a mere coincidence where the last action I did was close firefox turned off the monitor and walked away, that someone from adobe tries to hack my workstation.

So I could be paranoid but my machine is stable hardware wise.. all the latest drivers and bios etc..

I never received this BSOD before.

Enough said adobe flash player been the culprit, and not to mention it has domination on the internet ads commercial-wise.

I do not believe that this is a low risk, potentially billions of computers out there are affected by it.

I will think again about installing another adobe flash player because this is more then harmful then a virus or a trojan.

I just wanted to say that I'm now part of the club. My laptop (sony Vaio Z series i5, windows pro 64bit) seemed to randomly reboot when firefox was running, especially when there were many tabs open. This happened at least twice a day. I followed the advice of this thread and disabled the adobe flash hardware accelerator, and it seemed to stop 90% of the reboots. Now, it reboots once every few days or a week. This is still annoying as I am now paranoid of losing data while I'm working on my laptop, but it is waaaay better than it was (rebooting twice a day).

Anyway, from this thread, the concesus I gather is that adobe flash player is the culprit, but is there a solid solution (other than blocking adobe flash player, or not running firefox)? Is adobe aware of this issue and trying to fix it in the next flash player update? Why is it that this problem only affects a few people and not a lot? (I don't see many people in other forums complaining about this issue). I will monitor my cpu temp, in case it is hardware temperature-related. I will also disable windows Aero. If there are other things I can try to fully eliminate the problem, please let me know.

WinXP SP3, running on a laptop which is ~3 years old, all hardware appears to check out find via software tests. Memory was replaced about a year ago as a precaution, and it tests fine. All drivers updated to current. Flash fully uninstalled and reinstalled several times. Temperatures are completely stable, CPU load rarely gets above 14%, though I can take it to 100% without it crashing easily, and it will crash as low as 2%.

The crashing is ONLY when Flash is running. Unlike the others above however, I have this problem regardless of which browser I use. It started about 2 months ago, and I have experienced the crashes with Chrome, Both major versions of Firefox, and attempting to find a solution, ended up testing with IE 6, 7, and 8. I have the same issue with all of them. Occasionally it will freeze on scrolling, but usually when clicking on a flash object or typing into a flash object. And when it freezes, it's a complete hard freeze, image just stops, cursor doesn't move, etc... A hard boot is the only option. Nothing in the system log.

Sometimes I can go for about a week without a freeze, but then times like yesterday, it froze up 13 times in 5 hours. The only influence I have been able to have on the chance of the crash is by either A) not running flash at all, and then it won't crash, or B) the volume of Flash I am using. For example I found that i am more likely to have a crash the more tabs I have open that have Flash running on them. More likely however, not a sure thing. I have 9 open now without any issue. And it can (and does) crash on a single tab. I suspect this is all just because the more Flash I am running the more likely I am to be running whatever it is that causes the lockup.

I agree with the canned historical judgment that random lockups are hardware related. However, whatever the hardware issue is, it's being triggered by Flash somehow, and isn't showing up as a problem with any other tests.

Until now the system was totally stable. For the past 1-2 weeks, anytime I try to play videos on CNN's website (which uses Flash), my system freezes-- no response from mouse, keyboard, anything. Only way out is a hard reset.

I've opened the case and checked all connections. Pulled and re-seated memory, even switched the slots each stick is in. Pulled and re-seated graphics card. Cleaned CPU and graphics heatsinks with compressed air. Verified all fans are working. Replaced the power supply with a new Corsair 650w. Ran utilities to verify CPU and GPU temps, and found all to be very good (it's a well cooled case).

I've completely uninstalled all traces of Flash using the Adobe Flash Uninstaller, after killing all but essential processes (to make sure nothing had Flash open). Then I reinstalled the latest version available today (10 Feb 2011). Both the ActiveX component for IE8, and the Firefox version, still bring about a system lockup.

The only, and I mean ONLY thing that ever crashes this computer is playing Flash videos, usually from CNN.

It does not matter if I am viewing in IE8 or the latest version of Firefox. Result is exactly the same, on exactly the same videos, regardless of browser.

If this is truly a device driver issue, then it is ONLY triggered by Flash. I'm a very busy telecommuter who spends as much as 10-12 hours a day on this machine for both work and recreation. No other software of any kind causes this PC to lock up, so this is clearly a Flash-triggered problem.

Hardware Acceleration-- The first thing I did was disable it, before I started pulling parts and checking drivers.

CNN Help page-- useless info for gomers without a clue.

For what it's worth, the crash happened on a different site within an hour of my original post. The page had a Flash movie auto-start with page load, and as soon as the video started loading, the box locked up.

So it's not just CNN. Seems to be when there are pages with Flash video embedded. Regular (non-video) Flash objects don't seem to pose any problem. Just video.

Disabling hardware acceleration didn't help me at all. But I have read some other topics (from 2009) about similar adobe flash situations like this one and i decided to delete some registry key [-HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\ActiveX Compatibility\{D27CDB6E-AE6D-11CF-96B8-444553540000}],

I'm not sure if this will help. I'll go now on my favourite site chesscube.com to see if crashes repeat.

And if they'čč repeat once over again I think I'll first update IE and try to use that browser for a change.

But I do have some bad feeling neither of these will help.

Think I'll have to stay patient and wait for next Adobe Flash Player update with fix for all this nonsense crashes I have since installing last adobe update 10.2.

Sorry people for my bad english grammar.

And bye!

Little later: It crashed again. Now I'll try to install new IE. I only hope it'll work.

2) You can try, but I doubt updating the browser will help, since the version of Flash is the same.

My results are the same in both IE (which uses the ActiveX Flash component) and Firefox (which uses the standard install of Flash). Different browsers, different method of Flash integration-- but they crash on exactly the same pages.

Hi reda316, I wish you would start your own thread since it appears your problem is different than the one started a year ago or so. I don't have time to read thru old threads and then find that you or whoever posted last have a different problem!

I can tell what your problem is, but have a few questions first before we try to solve it.

When I see your thread, I'll reply to you.

Hi oblak24, please do the same as I've just suggested. I know about the Kill-bit, etc, etc. There is a solution, but start your thread please.

I have two identical dell studio 1458 laptops. One consistently crashes on sites with flash movies, the other does not. The best example is the curious george video on the pbskids.org site. Every time I load that page on the 'bad' studio, the computer hangs - the screen goes black, and only a hard reboot will fix it. I plan on swapping the hard drives to see if the problem follows the software or stays with the hardware but either way, the flash player definately seems to be a catalyst in this so I hope this isn't blown off as somebody else's problem. That said, I plan on sending this info to both dell and ATI.

This is no longer a problem for us, but only because we ditched the ATI Radeon video card in favor of a Matrox. But it still raises the question, how is Flash able to crash the computer-- and yes, Flash was the only app that produced such consequences.